I’ve never been a morning person. Not as a child and not now. The beginning of my day is filled with back-to-back alarms (of course snoozed). And when I’m awake, all I can think of going back to bed is.
Morning training? Forget it. I really will never understand someone who can take a 6 pm. And believe me, I have tried to be one of these people, but I simply do not have energy – even with several cups of coffee.
I am the kind of person who of course wakes up around 9 o’clock or 10 if I can help it-which is a huge improvement from my days to rise and shine on the literal afternoon when I went to high school, college and even after class. And before you call me lazy, hear me: you’re no better than me because you like to be awake before the sun comes up.
Experts in this article
Shelby HarrisPSYD, DBSM, Clinical Associate Professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine And author to “Women’s Guide to overcome insomnia”.
Why some people are early birds and other night roots
It is not my 100 percent wrong that I am not a morning person. There is a genetic predisposition for circadian watches (sleep-awakening schedule), according to Shelby Harris, Psyd, DBSM, clinical lecturer at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and author of “Women’s Guide to overcome insomnia”. “If you had a family member who tended to a specific sleep-wake-up timing, you are more likely to do it too,” she says. I can confirm that this is true: my mom prefers to stay up late to wake up early, just as I do.
But your genetic predisposition does not necessarily lock you into a specific sleep scheme forever. A study 2023 in Kronobiology International Found that your chronotype (your body’s natural inclination to sleep and wake up) can be affected by consistent behavior. For example, if you are a student who identifies himself as a nighthouse but your first class consistently starts at 7, you can become a morning person over time.
If you Want to become a morning personIt is possible to change your schedule, but it requires a lot of work and texture, says Dr. Harris – and your body will of course go back to its original schedule when given the chance. “If you struggle to sleep earlier but force yourself to wake up earlier and your body just does not adjust, you risk becoming more sleep -deprived, which can then adversely affect your mental and physical health,” she says. (More on that soon!)
Why do our society value morning people?
There is so much content out there How to become a morning personThe Benefits of morning trainingThe list continues. You’ve probably seen the TikTok trends where people vlogs their 5-to-9 before their 9 to 5 In an attempt to boast the fact that they are productive at 5
And let’s not forget the classic saying, “The early bird catches the mask.” Not to mention, supervisors who identify themselves as morning people tend to rate employees who identify themselves as night boils as poor artists, even when they are not, according to Australian HR Institute.
There are clear social values and rewards morning people. And Dr. Harris agrees. “People are believed to have more motivation and do more with their day when they get up early – they thought about achieving more with their day,” says Dr. Harris. “The reality is that this is a rather toxic way of thinking about sleep patterns, and there is no evidence that one schedule is better than another, provided it works for you in your life.”
In fact, many people wake up early to get into their workouts or be productive, but in reality they will still settle late and will not regularly get enough sleep, says Dr. Harris. This can be problematic in the long term. According to National Heart, Lung and Blood InstituteConsistent sleep deprivation can lead to health status as heart diseasekidney disease, High blood pressureDiabetes and stroke.
Your value as a human being is not bound to your biological makeup
Waking up early to do a workout, for example, is usually seen as superior to someone who chooses to sleep in and do their workout later in the day. But the reality is that in both scenarios the training is completed. Early morning deowers are not a better person than the one who breaks sweat after work. This can be said for all activities. As long as you find time in the day to do the things you value, why doesn’t it matter when you do it?
It is important to lean into your natural circadian preference if you can do so, as it can be extremely liberating, according to Dr. Harris. “I can’t say how many people I have worked with over the years trying to fight it because of the shame from society and others, but when they release it they make so much better,” she says. “The key, however, is that it works in your life. If it does not, you want to see treatment to adjust it.”
So if you are something that I and prefer to wake up and go to bed a little later than your friends and family in Early Bird, take this as a sign to lean into it. You are not a worse person to enjoy sleeping in, I promise.
Danielle Zickl is a freelance writer who has 10 years of experience covering fitness, health and nutrition. You can find her work here on PS, and in many other publications including the self, well+good, runner’s world, outside driving, peloton, women’s health and men’s fitness.
